Spain’s GDP grew by 5% in 2021

The Spanish economy grew by 5% in 2021, the National Statistics Institute (INE) announced Friday, in an initial estimate that is 1.5% lower than the government’s target.

“In terms of volume, GDP registers a variation of 5.0%”, the INE announced, after noting a growth of 2.0% in the fourth quarter of 2021, compared to the previous quarter in terms of volume.

The Spanish government has forecast a gross domestic product (GDP) expansion of 6.5% by 2021, following a 10.8% decline in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic crisis.

In contrast, the 2021 data are higher than the expectations of the International Monetary Fund and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, which saw growth in Spain of 4.6 and 4.5% respectively.

France’s GDP

In turn, France’s growth reached 7% in 2021 after the record recession of 2020 (with a decline of 8%), according to a first estimate published on Friday.

With a fourth quarter of 2021 experiencing 0.7% growth, activity “clearly” exceeds its level just before the health crisis at the end of the year, the country’s National Institute of Statistics (INSEE) stressed.

The evolution of the French economy surpassed the forecasts of INSEE and the Bank of France, which predicted a growth of 6.7 percent.

In 2021, GDP “remained 1.6% below its 2019 average level,” according to the institute.